Reading Notes: Nigerian Folk Stories, Part A

· This reminds me of the story of Samson and Delilah. I wonder if I can take the same concept but transpose it to a modern, less dark tale? Similarly, I could take the moral (“never marry a stranger, no matter how pretty she may be”) and write a different story to match it.

· The second story was the sad one about the rat and the bat. I guess I could do something about a friend betraying his friend…

· The moral of this story is also not to marry strangers. Once again, I could take that theme and run with it. Maybe they could end up marrying someone with one extremely eccentric and unforeseen habit or something.

· What if instead they passed a law that you could only have one wife at a time?

· Wow, I’m sad for all of the wives and mad at the king.

· What if I made the king into a little boy with toys instead, or something like that?

· I’m a bit confused about what Okun Archibong had thought, and what he was trying to accomplish. I guess I could write a story about a meddlesome person who gets his comeuppance (like Effiong Edem). Also, the theme about who you marry came up again.

· Wasn’t the leopard’s wife also in the wrong?

· The elephant and worm story about their eyes makes me very sad L.

· I think the hawk and hen story could be seen as yet another variation of why to not marry a story. Once again I could do a variation of that story. Or I could just pick some trait or interaction of animals and explain it through story.

· I’m saddened by the cat and rat story. Could I rewrite it where the king feels sorry for the rat and his girl, so he pays for them to be wed, or some other happy ending like that? Like, one that involves mercy instead of punishment?

(Oguta Lake, Nigeria)

Bibliography: Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria, by Elphinstone Dayrell.

Reading Notes: Japanese Fairy Tales (Ozaki), Part A

· His name is “My Lord Bag of Rice.” What if I told a story where he has a very similarly strange name, with some different back-story?

· For some reason, it stands out to me that the Dragon King is more concerned that he may eventually be carried off than that his children are being carried off.

· He said he would grant the King’s request if he could before he heard what it was. That’s a big no-no in quests.

· What if actually the Dragon King is evil and the centipede is good, but Hidesato blindly trusts the King? Could I write a story to that effect?

· I liked how well described the centipede was. He sounded genuinely terrifying and awful.

· I also like how he needed to find a trick (the human saliva thing) rather than just being able to kill it by brute force.

· What if I write a story where Hidesato doesn’t like fish? That would make everything less pleasant.

· So the way I would change his name would be by, I suppose, giving him different gifts. What if I wrote about the aftermath of his deeds, except he got super weird and inconvenient gifts and now he’s not sure what to do with them? Like a pot that always turned out desserts, but only totally gross desserts, like garlic ice cream or something?

· Or again, what if I told stories about Kintaro, but with very different animal friends?

· Also, it doesn’t seem fair for a bear to wrestle a hare.

· I feel like the wrestling matches sound like they would potentially leave hard feelings between various members of the group.

· It’s weird that the man just went into the cottage, and I want him to be Kintaro’s dad, even though Kintaro’s dad is dead.

· What if I change the animals and have them pit against each other at a game of chess or something, instead of wrestling?

(illustration from the book)

Bibliography:  Japanese Fairy Tales, retold by Yei Theodora Ozaki

Tech Tip: Google Site Page

Here is the new page for the introduction to my Storybook.  Enjoy!:)

Reading Notes: The Ramayana, Part B

· Thirteen and a half years pass without us knowing anything that happens during them. I could write a story chronicling some of their life during that time.

· Demon-woman: “I’m in love with you, so let’s eat Sita and your brother and then go rule my kingdom together.” Rama: “I love Sita, so you should marry my brother instead.” What?! If I was Lakshmana and I heard that interaction, I’d be pretty upset. Maybe I could write of him overhearing the conversation and being like, “Dude! What were you thinking! She’s a demon-lady who wanted to eat me!” Then they could all go on their merry way.

· What if I told a story from the point of view of a Rakshasa? There are fourteen thousand of them, after all.

· Actually, that might be pretty unpleasant. They are demons, after all.

· Could I take the trick the demons used to kidnap Sita (turn into a deer, pretend Rama is in danger, get Lakshmana to leave her and go help) in a different context? Like, transpose the basic idea to a different situation?

· I don’t understand how Sita could be greeted in the way Ravana greeted her without being totally, completely, super creeped out.

· I’m confused: Sugriva challenged his brother to single combat, but then Rama shot him? That doesn’t seem like single combat.

· What if Lakshmana and his wife had joined Rama in the woods and then she was kidnapped, rather than Lakshmana joining Rama and his wife?

· Can Brahma decree the same thing he decreed over Ravana over Zeus? Please?

· I could tell the tale from the perspective of Sampati, the injured brother of Jatayus, king of the vultures, who saw Sita being carried away.

· Rather than trying to get her to sleep with him, what other, less dire situation could I put Sita and Ravana in? Like, maybe he’s trying to get her to tell him her boyfriend’s secret strategy in a game or something?

(Illustration by Warwick Goble)

Bibliography:   The Ramayana, retold by Donald Mackenzie and found in Indian Myth and Legend.

Reading Notes: The Ramayana, Part A

· I’m not sure how I feel about this, but I could actually just tell the story of how Valmiki invented poetry. Oooh! Actually, I could write a lament for the heron! I like that idea. Poetry is fun.

· What if they just prayed and the gods were merciful, instead of doing a fancy schmancy ceremony?

· Or, what if I wrote a story about the gods, leaving out humans entirely. They’re basically beefed up humans and in need of being saved, so why not?

· Aww I liked the story about baby Rama. I could make that (where he wants the moon and is eventually given a mirror) into a cute little tale.

· Haha I love how nonchalantly this says things. They began with the alphabet, “then they studied grammar, and at length they mastered eighteen languages.” Casual.

· Rama is slaying lots of demons. I’m curious as to the differences between the gods and the demons. I don’t really understand yet.

· Does Rama know he’s Vishnu?

· Did he mean to break the bow? What if I write a story where he only meant to bend and string it, then is horribly embarrassed when he breaks it, and is embarrassed during the wedding ceremony, and just keeps being embarrassed?

· Manthara is super pessimistic (because she hates Rama). So many troubles come from having multiple wives. How could I use that idea in a story?

· Does granting a boon mean he has to do literally whatever she asks?

· I could write a story from the point of view of Bhatara when he learns what his mother has done. He may either be really happy or really upset. Edit: he’s really upset.

· I do like Rama. He’s a man of his word.

· What if I did a gender swap, where Sita is banished by a rival somehow, and Rama goes with her to the jungle?

(Dasharatha and Kaikeyi)

Bibliography:  The Ramayana, retold by Donald Mackenzie and found in Indian Myth and Legend.

Feedback Focus

Honestly, I don’t think that I’m incredibly likely to use any of these strategies heavily in the future.  I don’t know that any of them helped me to comprehend the story overly much, and they definitely affected my reading in different ways than I expected.

I think that reading out loud is the most likely to be useful to me.  There are two very real disadvantages.  The first is that it’s far more convenient to do alone.  I had to leave the room where I’m studying with friends in order to do it, and that’s not always practical.  The other problem was that sometimes when I read out loud it takes me a while to adjust before I pay attention to the story.  I’m thinking too much about reading well at first.  However, I know that sometimes when I’m having trouble focusing on something, reading it slowly out loud REALLY helps.  This wasn’t great for me this time, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be a useful skill in the future.

I think the second most likely to be useful is the one where you focus for ten minutes.  This has the advantage of, you know, keeping you focused and probably forcing you to read it twice.  However, I don’t think I’m likely to use it.  College students seem to be perpetually busy, so the idea of allotting more time to something than it actually takes feels improbable.  Also, I really enjoyed reading the story through the first time, and felt very bored the second time.

I don’t think I’ll ever use the other strategy.  It interrupted the flow of the story too much for my taste, and I think it actually detracted from my understanding of the story.  I hadn’t realized how often I look back at what I’ve already read until I couldn’t anymore.  I would want to check to make sure I was remembering a detail correctly, but the paragraph that it was in would be gone.  It was frustrating.

Personally, I tend to just like reading a story through, slowly.

(Reading Books)

Tech Tip: Google Site Website

Hello, everyone!:)  I've just set up my website for my storybook project.  It can be found here.  Enjoy!

Reading Notes: Turkish Fairy Tales, Part A

· I really like this idea: That the boy is looking for fear but cannot find it. Can I tell a story with a different quality substituted? Like, someone is looking for selfishness, or shame, or pride, or weakness? Or, perhaps, I could turn the story on its head, and have someone looking for courage and unable to come across it, no matter the circumstance?

· Ooooh I could tell a similar story, but the youth could end up being afraid of the maidens because they’re so beautiful.

· … He ended up being afraid when a bird in his soup startled him. That was kind of a let down, to be honest. I like my idea better. Or he could have been afraid of the responsibility of being Shah.

· A lot of Middle Eastern stories seem to emphasis the big deal of having children (and especially a son). Could I use this?

· Wow, I’m left super curious about what the dervish wanted to know if the youth knew.

· I don’t really feel like this story was resolved. Maybe I can just write a story where stuff happens and there’s not really a conclusion…

· There seems to be a theme of animals turning into maidens. I could roll with that. Or, maybe, I could tell a story about animals where humans are just kind of milling around, doing their thing, but then a maiden turns into a fish or something, and another fish falls in love with her. Basically, maybe I could flip the story inside out.

· Why do these sons never know their father’s occupations?

· I feel sad for the Peri queen and her little bird L.

· What if the Peri didn’t want to marry the Padishah? I don’t particularly like the Padishah.

· I could definitely use the theme of the jealous friend.

(The Crow-Peri)

Bibliography:  Forty-Four Turkish Fairy Tales, by Ignacz Kunos

Reading Notes: Twenty-Two Goblins, Part B

· One of Hariswami’s first thoughts when he sees that his wife is missing is to wonder if she’s mad at him. If I were to use a story based on this story, I wonder if I could use that in a humorous way. Or play up tensions in a relationship.

· Wow, this dude is really messed up over the fact that his wife is missing (understandable).

· The charitable woman is great. What if I wrote this story and made her into a little girl or something resembling innocence or something?

· Hmm and then she’s falsely accused. That could continue to go with the innocence thing.

· I’d rather do something to make it funny, though.

· But no matter what, if it ends in someone innocent being blamed, it’ll make me sad. So maybe I shouldn’t use this story, because I don’t want to write a sad story two weeks in a row.

· So Pearl really doesn’t want to get married, but a bunch of people want to marry her. Could I turn that into some other sort of not wanting something?

· The king goes to the house of the thief by pretending to be a thief

· Oh, good. Pearl fell in love with the guy.

· Then she was going to kill herself with him, so a god offered her a boon, and she chose to make him live. This is so weird. What if she was a really good dancer, but wouldn’t enter a dance competition with anyone except this guy she liked who got himself banned from the competition, and she got him back in? Or something like that?

· Also, just because she likes him people start calling her his wife. Shouldn’t he get some say?

· Wow! The king was faithful! That makes me so happy.

· Could I write a different story with the moral “if fate opposed, even a virtue that has been painfully acquired does not profit, but rather injures.”

(He Comforted Her)

Bibliography:  Twenty-Two Goblins, translated by Arthur Ryder

Reading Notes: Twenty-Two Goblins, Part A

· A theme in the first riddle is the difference between the love of a father, the love of a son, and the love of a lover. That could be usable in some sort of modernization or something.

· Also, there’s the theme that “Great-minded people do not waver until they have kept their promises, even at the cost of life.” I like that.

· The three suitors thing happened again (both times based solely on her looks).

· In fact, everyone’s falling in love over looks.

· I love the sentence “She robbed the moon of its beauty and White of his heart.”

· Wow, I’m so annoyed at the husband and brother. It was almost going to be Romeo and Juliette-esque, but then it was just silly instead. Or at least it was stupid of the husband. The brother is slightly more understandable.

· The older brother is trying to push the unpleasant task onto his younger brothers.

· These seem like really arbitrary specialties. I could update it and just have some random skills that they have and are fighting over. I feel like these specialties are actually curses, not blessings.

· The king things the cotton guy is cleverest. That makes no sense! Having sensitive skin is not the same as being clever!

· Huh… Grace would be embarrassed to have to choose a suitor herself, rather than her father marrying her off. That’s interesting. I wonder if I could use it.

· These stories seem to value strength and bravery over other merits.

· I could also update the story of the three delicate wives (although I might change it from wives to daughters). How could they be super sensitive nowadays? And would that be ok, or just super inconvenient?

· Alternatively, I could choose one of the sensitive wives and tell a story from her perspective. Like “A Day in the Life of Someone Who Can’t Breathe Without being Injured.”

(the goblin in the tree)

Bibliography:  Twenty-Two Goblins, translated by Arthur Ryder

Story: The Son of the King

Once upon a time, in a land where winters are bitter and summers are sweet, there were two little kingdoms. For as long as Rey could remember, and for almost as long as his mother Reyna could remember, they had been at war. The village in which Rey lived was perpetually short on menfolk, with fathers and husbands off doing noble deeds on the front lines, but that night was different. That night there were many men home on leave, and there was feasting and merriment in the square.

Skryta and Rey sat mesmerized for many an hour near the great bonfire in the midst of the celebrations, listening to glorious stories of battle. Ridder, Skryta’s father, was a strong and brave man. His companions seemed to have story after story of his prowess and great leadership, and only rumors of the valiant king outshone his tales.

Skryta was filled with pride over his masterful father, and could speak of nothing else over the following days and weeks. He was ever recounting and embellishing stories, until finally Rey grew weary and spoke his mind.

“We’ve heard of this escapade before. Mother and I recently received news of my father’s deeds. Shall I tell you?”

Skryta, having never heard Rey talk about his father, nodded eagerly, and Rey spoke of courageous acts and mighty strength. However, Skyrta, knowing the stories, scorned him. “Rey, it is the king you are speaking of, not your father. Just because your father’s not a great knight, there is no need to lie to me.”

Rey was stung. He exclaimed, “I wasn’t lying! My father is our good king!”

But Skryta gave him a withering look, and said, “No he’s not, you liar. I’m going to go home to see if we’ve received any news from the front.” And he ran off.

Rey watched him dejectedly, and then went to find his mother. He found her behind the cottage, hanging linens on a line.

Reyna smiled cheerily at her son, and then caught his expression. She turned back to her work and asked “What’s wrong, dear one?”

“Mother, would you ever lie to me?”

She looked at him surprised. “Never in my life, Rey.”

“Then why would you tell me that the king is my father, when it can’t be true?” he asked.

“Now why on earth would it not be the truth? You’ve never doubted me before. I would swear on whatever you ask me to that you are his son,” she replied.

He studied the ground, unsatisfied. “I want him to tell me, so that all my friends may see.”

She looked hard at him before replying, “Then go. You are old enough. When he comes to the castle for rest, ask him yourself.”

And so he went.

Rey joined the other peasants who sought audiences with the king, to seek redress for their grievances or to present gifts. However, Rey was not greeted like the other peasants. When the good king saw him, he left his throne and embraced him with paternal affection. “My son! My heart is warmed at the sight of you. You have taken after your beautiful mother. I am so glad that you have come. What can I do for you?”

And so Rey’s fears were assuaged, but Skryta would not believe him, and he had to prove his lineage somehow. He asked “My father, will you give me a gift?”

“What ever you ask, my son!” the king replied. “I swear by the heavens and the earth I will not keep it from you.”

“My friends do not believe that my father is valiant. Let me ride with you to battle, that they may know that I am indeed your son!”

The king’s smile faded. “I cannot retract my oath, but I wish I could. Hasn’t your mother spoken to you of your danger? I do not wish people to know of my wife and my son, for there may be spies among us. I would not have you hurt, or taken for ransom. What is more, I ride into the hottest parts of the fray! It would not do for you to come with me. It would endanger you, and every man near you.”

But Rey responded, “This is my request. Will you deny me?”

His troubled father answered, “I will not. We are returning to the fields tomorrow at dawn.”

(Drawing of a Knight on Horseback, by Randolph Caldecott)

And the next day they rode to battle. Rey was given armor, and a place of honor near his father’s charger, and saw the remarkable deeds of his father, and of Ridder, and of many other brave knights.  He even used his own sword once or twice, though not as often as he would have wished. But the king was a man of foresight, and as evening fell Rey grew too brave for his youth and inexperience, and followed his father too closely into great danger.  He was weary from a day's hard labor, and there Rey fell, unable to match the deeds of the knights around him.

The news was swiftly sent to the village, and many mourned for this foolish son of a king.

The end.

Author's Note:  This story was based on the tale of Phaethon and Apollo.  Phaethon is Apollo's son, and wishes to prove so to his friends.  He visits Apollo and extracts a promise that he will be granted any wish, then requests to drive the chariot of the sun for a day.  Apollo reluctantly acquiesces, but the youth cannot control it and catches parts of the earth on fire, and is killed.  It's a sad story.  I wanted to take all of the basic elements, but transfer them to a different setting, such as a king in wartime.  It's still about a boy trying to earn glory and prove himself to his friends, and causing great harm as a result.

Bibliography:  Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline.

Reading Notes: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Part B

· Hey look. Hera punished Tiresias for something that wasn’t his fault. Who’s surprised?

· There is literally so much rape in Greek mythology. Like, I used to read Greek myths all the time for fun when I was little, but they must have been super censored storybooks, or I just didn’t get it. This isn’t particularly a note for what I want to write about, because I don’t particularly want to write about rape.

· Actually, just everyone is lusting after everyone else all the time.

· Basically, I could write any story involving lust and vindictive characters, and say it’s modeled after the themes of Greek myths a whole.

· I could write about someone who gets caught up in himself, though in a different way than Narcissus. It would be an unpleasant story to write, though.

· Are the naiads and the dryads lamenting Narcissus, or his beauty? I could write about a funeral in which it’s painfully obvious that the mourners are weeping for certain qualities in the person who died without mourning for the person himself.

· One of the great tools used in the story of Pyramus and Thisbe is the dramatic irony (i.e., you know she’s alive but he doesn’t). How could I write a slightly less dramatic version of a great failure at communication? Maybe two people were going to go on vacation somewhere, but one thought that the other missed a plane, so they missed their plane, etc.?

· If I want to base something off the story of Mercury and Venus I could tell of two people being caught and then someone makes a snarky comment at the end and no on is deterred from the misdeed in the future.

· I’m annoyed at Perseus for not offering to rescue innocent Andromeda whether or not her parents agree to let him marry her.

· Oh, look, Medusa was raped by a god then punished for it. I wouldn’t have guessed.

(15th Century Illustration of Ovid)

Bibliography:  Ovid's Metamorphoses, translated by Tony Kline.

Reading Notes: Ovid's Metamorphoses, Part A

· I could tell a sad story based loosely on the story of Io, in which someone innocent bears the punishment for someone else’s misdeeds.

· The naiads and her own father didn’t know her.

· I could write about someone who somehow has Mercury’s pipe and uses it to charm then steal from Argus.

· Hera punishes Io for Mercury killing ArgusL. I really don’t like Greek/Roman gods.

· What if I did the story of Phaethon (loosely), except instead of being the son of a god he is the son of some sort of royalty, and wants to prove it to his friends? What if they are in some sort of wartime that makes it dangerous for his lineage to be revealed, because it would make him a target?

· What if he was trying to prove himself to his friend who was the son of a famous and brave knight?

· And his father could still make the rash promise, then try to dissuade his son.

· Perhaps the son wishes to ride to battle with his father?

· Wow, whole nations are reduced to ash. We’re talking large consequences.

· Also, according to Earth, there are even bigger consequences. This could destroy her and the sea, and Atlas is barely able to hold up the white-hot heavens. If worst comes to worst, they could be “lost in ancient chaos”.

· His sisters mourn and are turned into trees? Ok. So his actions affect the rest of his family.

· Jupiter is horrid.

· Once again, there’s this theme of other people’s lives being ruined for one person’s sins.

· So, basically if I just tell a really sad story about innocent people suffering I’ll have the right idea.

· All these gods are swearing by the Styx all the time, which seems to never go well for them.

· The idea of making a promise that ends up killing people seems a common theme… perhaps I could use that.

(The Sun God)

Bibliography: Ovid's Metamorphoses translated by Tony Kline.

My Feedback Thoughts

It was interesting reading these articles.  Historically I'm probably not very good at receiving feedback, or, more specifically, at receiving constructive criticism.  It's good to be reminded that it's normal to feel uncomfortable when receiving less than glowing feedback.

However, another interesting thing was seeing the concept of receiving feedback framed in such a different context than I am used to seeing it.  I felt as though these articles mainly focused on how to use feedback while maintaining a healthy self-esteem.  I have been accustomed to thinking of it as more an issue of humility.  I don't mean down-on-yourself, I'm-not-as-good-as-everyone-else type humility.  I mean a humility that abandons self-bias.  C. S. Lewis talks (I think in the Screwtape Letters?) about a humility that makes a man able to rejoice in skills or a job well done equally whether it belongs to him or his neighbor: his joy is not the more because the skill is his, but just because it is his he does not underestimate its value.  Developing that sort of humility, rather than simply trying to bolster our own self-esteem all the time, seems conducive to accepting feedback with grace.

Another quick thought I had was about the idea of "emotional first aid" as talked about in "Why rejection hurts so much -- and what to do about it."  Winch talks about boosting your feelings of self-worth through listing meaningful qualities you possess, such as having a good work ethic.  In other words "remind yourself of your value, which comes from what you do.  If you mess up in those areas, you'd better have some other skill to fall back on, because your worth is based on what you do."  Or at least that's how it felt to me.  It seemed like a horribly depressing and rather unhealthy thing to fall back on, actually.  I don't want to be defined by what I'm good or bad at.

(Jelynegermata)